November 2018

Homeowners thinking about selling in the near future will find that repainting their home's interior can make the rooms look cleaner and more attractive. For those hoping to stage their property, choosing the right interior paint colours can lead to a faster sale and better offers.

Make Proper Use of Neutral Shades

Neutral shades are the easy answer when asking how to choose paint colours. The neutral colour palette includes beige, gray, white and cream. Earth tones like gray-green and gray-blue may also be considered neutrals in some cases. Neutrals are considered favorable by many home buyers because they match almost anything. By painting your South Calgary home’s interior with neutral colours, you help ensure that your home will meet the

Even though selling a home has sometimes been termed "a numbers game" in the sense that you are likely to receive an offer if you (or your real estate agent) can generate enough traffic, there are tried and true methods to make your property shine, to keep time on market to a minimum, and to generate the best possible price, regardless of if you're in a hot market like Southeast Calgary or elsewhere. These tips include positive marketing steps, acknowledging that a home sale depends in part on the merchandising expertise of the seller as much as on the "product."

Take advantage of every opportunity to help your home outshine the competition when selling your home. Here are 5 great ways to do it:

Keep Your Home Clean and Bright

Most home sellers want to sell quickly, without having to spend a lot of money on upgrades. If flooring is an area that needs an update, you may not be sure how to make that happen.

This guide shows you what to do with what you have, and when to step it up.

Looking Under the Flooring

The first thing you should do is to take a peek under the current flooring of your West Calgary home. This might be tricky if you currently have anything that is listed as "peel and stick." However, it is often worth the effort. Looking at the subfloor is useful because it helps you understand what is going on.

You could have pet stains, mold, or even wonderful hardwood lurking underneath. There was a time in the not-too-distant past when the majority of

A real estate purchase offer is a binding contract that outlines the specifics of a home purchase. Before the seller accepts or denies the contract, it's important for the seller to understand the contract and its terms. If you're currently selling a home, or if you're thinking about listing your home for sale, here's what you need to know about the home purchase contract.

For informational purposes only. Always consult with a licensed real estate professional before proceeding with any real estate transaction.

Firm Versus Conditional Offers

A firm offer is an offer to purchase a home as-is. Once the offer is signed, it's binding. If the buyer cancels the contract without purchasing the home, the buyer may lose the deposit.

Often, a competitive market analysis is commonly produced by real estate agents for their seller clients to review, as it aids in pricing the home by providing an overview of competing homes & recent sales. However, this tool can also be highly effective when home buyers use it as well.

If you are planning to buy a home, you need as much information as possible about the property and this type of report, completed by your real estate agent, can shed a great deal of light on it. When it comes to home buying, this should be one of the first steps you take when you've found a potential property.

What Is a Competitive Market Analysis?

A competitive market analysis is a report created by your real estate agent. Commonly referred to as a CMA,

Closing costs can cause stress for home buyers. In addition to being costly, closing costs can be difficult to estimate. Knowing what closing costs are, how much you can expect to pay and when closing costs are due can help you plan for this part of the home buying process.

What Are Closing Costs?

Closing costs are the costs associated with legal and administrative actions that occur when a person buys a home. Closing costs can run anywhere from 1.5 to 4 percent of the purchase price of the home, depending on the location of the home and the various administrative actions that occur during the sale process. Each home purchase is different, so closing costs are different every time.

Who Pays Closing Costs?

There's no doubt that buying in a competitive market is intimidating, and it's not unusual for sky-high prices to make a buyer think twice about their plans. But there are still a lot of advantages to buying instead of renting, even in high-demand areas in major cities. In fact, it may end up being the smartest investment you ever make. Follow these tip to get the best possible deal (and to crush the competition.)

Timing Is Everything

Those without a lot of patience will love buying in a popular neighborhood because there's virtually no wait time. Buyers have to be ready to see a property as soon as it's up for sale, preferably within 24 hours of the first announcement. That little extra edge can sometimes make an offer seem more attractive

Design options for a beautiful new kitchen are at your fingertips these days. There are so many good renovation ideas online, in magazines and at every open house in Calgary that you visit.

Unfortunately, you love them all. Where should you start? Who should you talk to? What would look best in your Calgary home and at the end of the day, be the best investment when it comes to resale value?

What is Your Kitchen Makeover Goal?

Gutting your kitchen is never a good idea unless you know why you’re holding that sledgehammer in your hand. Think of all the reasons why you’re getting out your cheque book for this renovation. Do you want to increase the value of your home because you want to sell it – and, when do you want to sell it? Do you

For as cold as winters get in the Great White North, insulation isn't a very popular topic of conversation. After all, it's easy to get caught up in the day-to-day minutiae of life instead of thinking about how much heat homeowners are losing to the outdoors. But for those who care about their energy bills and their resale price, they may want to reconsider.

Signs of Poor Insulation

If utility bills are starting to climb sky-high or the ice dams of the home are getting bigger and bigger every year, these are usually clear signs the home needs better insulation. However, homeowners may want to consider getting an energy audit regardless. Insulation standards change on regular basis, meaning even newer homes may not be nearly as efficient as

As soon as you start thinking of placing your home on the market, everyone you know seems to have some essential "advice" to give. While your friends and family may mean well, quite often the advice they are handing out may be incorrect.

The last thing you want is to take bad advice when trying to sell one of the biggest investments you may have. In order to sift through all the noise, knowing what advice may help or hurt your home's selling is quite important. Here are some home selling myths that should be avoided;

Hiring Just Any Agent Will Be Fine

Hiring the right real estate agent is probably one of the most important things you will do when selling your home. So using an agent just because your best friend's doctor's son is an agent